Ashley put his hands to his mouth shocked. ‘Oh, God, yes! There are no schoolboys involved, or anything nasty like that. Seriously, Jake, they’re all grown men, and it’s their choice. Ralph Gold, no, you hardly ever see him in here. It’s more of a status thing that he is a member. Honest.’ Ashley held up his hand, as though swearing on the Bible.
‘Very well; keep it that way. You know I’ll have to discuss this with Tony, don’t you. I’m not sure what his attitude will be. Thank you for your honesty.’ With that, he walked out of the room, leaving Ashley behind.
***
Jake felt he had to speak to Tony as soon as possible about what he’d just learned. It was crazy; Tony wouldn’t want to be associated with anything like that. He wouldn’t want the newspapers thinking he liked men, for God’s sake.
Jake went back to the club. Sharon was in the office with the accountant, going through the night’s takings.
‘Did you know that fancy men’s club is some kind of gay knocking shop, Sharon?’ he said.
Sharon looked up; she showed no sign of shock, and then she looked down again. ‘Yes, I did. What of it?’
This was a night full of surprises. Jake was dumbfounded, everyone seemed to know all about this except himself and Tony. ‘Is that all you have to say about it?’
Sharon looked up, took off her glasses and held them in her hand, ‘Why is it, Jake, that no one ever questions men looking at strippers or picking up prostitutes? Don’t be a bigot. I thought you were better than that. Did you know that some of our most glamorous strippers are lesbians?’
Jake nodded; yes, he did know that. Some of the strippers were heartily sick of hearing the same old chat up lines, sick of the way the punters wanted to maul them or pick them up, even though they had no interest in men. They danced and teased them for the money and to pay their bills and the punters never thought anything of it when they went home with their best friend, who just so happened to be their girlfriend.
‘I’m not a bigot, you know that. Live and let live, that’s my attitude, I’m just shocked that that Mathers guy, with all his pompous ways, lets all that go on. That’s all.’
‘Well, Jake, love, it seems he’s more broad-minded than you, doesn’t it?’ With that, Sharon carried on with her work.
The accountant looked up at Jake. ‘Why do you care so much what goes on in there? It’s making a lot of money, that’s business.’
Jake felt he was going mad. No one seemed to care, only he thought it was crazy. Tony had tried all this time to make sure that the strip club was respectable and didn’t get a bad reputation, and yet now he’d learned the men’s club was everything Tony had tried to avoid.
Jake left Sharon and the accountant to their sums and walked back into the club. He needed a stiff drink. Worse still, he was the one that would have to tell Tony.
***
The next morning, after a sleepless night, Jake went to Tony’s apartment at the club. It was weird; Tony only ever did his female entertaining at the nightclub, he never took women to the casino apartment. He watched as Tony went through his usual ritual of getting rid of the woman he had spent the night with. Jake was surprised that it wasn’t Roxy.
Tony kissed the woman quickly on the lips and shut the door behind her. Jake had to grin to himself; who said romance was dead! Still, those women knew there was no future in anything with Tony, what they did was entirely their choice. Then it struck him that was exactly what Ashley had said last night. These gay guys were consenting adults and it was their choice.
‘What happened with Roxy? I thought you were going to spend the night with her.’
Tony poured two mugs of coffee and smiled. ‘I did, for an hour or two, and then Tracey telephoned me for a chat. You know I’m never one to miss a golden opportunity.’
‘You randy old sod, one day that thing of yours will go on strike or drop off, believe me.’
‘Just not last night, eh, Jake. Right, what is it? It’s early, you knew I was entertaining, and yet you’re here with that look on your face that spells trouble.’ Tony was dressed in his white towelling bathrobe. He sat at the breakfast bar and took a sip of his coffee, waiting for Jake to speak.
‘I wanted to tell you last night, but you were busy,’ Jake said, then he took a deep breath and started to fill Tony in on everything he had discussed with Ashley. Tony sat drinking his coffee and never spoke, he just watched Jake’s distressed face as he explained what the men’s club was known for. ‘What do you think, Tony?’ he said, when he’d finished.
Tony put his mug down, picked up the coffee pot and poured himself a refill, then offered some to Jake. ‘I knew there was something. Ashley was far too quick off the trigger asking to host male striptease nights. Remember, I’ve been in prison, Jake, I do know that kind of stuff goes on.’
‘So, you’re okay with it.’ Jake’s nerves were frazzled. He had been worried all night, expecting Tony to fly off the handle and close the club.
‘Well, not okay, exactly, but that’s life. Those guys are paying a lot of money for their membership and their guests are buying drinks, and hoping to get on Mathers’ reserve listings. He’ll keep everything in order, I trust him. Money is money, and they are paying well for the privilege. Also, a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. These men may not accept me or my lifestyle, but they’ll come around if they think I know their little secrets. Blackmail is an ugly word, but very useful in business.’ Tony smiled and raised his mug. He walked away and went to the bathroom to shower.
Jake sat back on the sofa and rested his head; he let out a deep sigh. So that was Tony’s angle. The members were going to accept Tony one way or another. He had it all worked out. Tony was right, of course, Ashley had been a little too quick to suggest his entertainment ideas. Why hadn’t he seen it?
***
When Tony was ready, they got in the car and John pulled away.
‘Where are we going?’ said Jake.
'We’re going to see Angus,’ said Tony.
Reports of how Angus was running things in the south of London were good. Angus was loyal and did as he was told. He was also under the threat of his wife, which still made them both laugh.
‘What do we need to check up on him for? He’s doing okay, isn’t he?’ Again, Jake was at a loss, wondering what Tony had up his sleeve.
‘I need him to do us a favour.’
‘What sort of favour?’
‘Things are too quiet, Jake, we need to stir up a little trouble in the pubs, shake them up a little, and then we’ll rush in and save the day, and they’ll all be grateful they’re paying us for protection.’
‘So, what are you going to do? Get him to barge in, causing all kinds of trouble?’
‘Not him, some of the old mob under his charge. Just a few fights and maybe some threats, and we earn our money, so to speak.’
Jake couldn’t understand why Tony needed to upset the equilibrium. Why did he want to cause trouble, when everything was running smoothly? It was like he enjoyed the excitement of trouble and hated routine boredom. He needed another project, and yet there wasn’t one.
Walking into the old pub that Marlon had used as his office seemed strange. Under Angus’s wife’s orders, the whole place was clean and tidy. It certainly didn’t look like some old drug den. Inside the pub, they could clearly hear Angus’s voice, that strong Scottish accent bellowing down the corridors.
‘Everything okay, Angus?’ asked Tony. There were two men in front of Angus, and he was giving them a piece of his mind.
‘Och, aye, boss, it’s you. Come in, laddies, sit down.’ He looked at the two men standing before him, and then back at Tony and Jake. ‘Nothing I can’t handle.’
Tony and Jake both forgave Angus’s tone and lack of respect. To him, that was a friendly welcome and he meant no disrespect. Angus waved his arm and indicated that the two men were to leave the room, and then stood at the door and watched them walk down the stairs.
‘How are
you settling in, Angus? Is everything okay?’ Tony wanted to know what that argument was all about, but he didn’t want to undermine Angus.
‘Settled in just fine. The wife’s happy and off my back, I hardly recognize her these days, she hasn’t nagged at me half as much as she used to. The kids are okay, as well.’ It suddenly dawned on Angus what Tony really wanted to know. ‘Oh, right,’ he said. ‘Some of them are not quite used to me, yet, they still think they’re working for that black mob boss. Well, it’s up to me to show them they’re not. They want to do their own thing, and collect the money in their own time, when they finally fall out of bed. No, it’s not the way things are going to be run around here. You had us all on a strict routine, Mr Lambrianu, we all had our daily rotas worked out, and that’s what I have to teach those numbskulls.’
Tony nodded and smiled at Angus; he had made a good choice here. Angus wasn’t used to thinking for himself, he was all brawn and no brains, but what he was doing was copying how Tony ran things. ‘You can fire them, if you think they’re not up to the job, you know.’
‘It won’t come to that, Mr Lambrianu, they just need putting in their place and a good battering now and again, and they’ll soon come around.’ Angus was sure about that; he wasn’t going to let anyone steal his thunder.
‘Well, Angus, we need to stir up a little trouble in the East End. Possibly some threats and a little chaos, nothing too serious, just enough to let people remember why they pay us the amounts they do.’ Tony looked at Jake, they both waited for this to work its way into Angus’s brain. Jake had said he reminded him of his favourite comedian, Billy Connolly, only without the brains.
‘Why, Mr Lambrianu? Everything’s going okay, here, I have things under control. Granted, I’ve had to go around to some of those guys’ houses and pull them out of bed, but they are all getting the hang of things.’ Angus looked worried. He had done his best, all the money had been collected on time and it was all the correct amounts, and he had even gone around collecting himself to introduce himself to the publicans in South London.
‘Calm down, Angus.’ Tony’s smooth, velvety voice seemed to put Angus at his ease. ‘This is nothing to do with you, you’re doing a good job, but we have to keep reminding these people we rely on for our wages who they are dealing with.’ That seemed to do the trick, now Angus understood.
‘What do you want me to do, Mr Lambrianu? Just tell me when and where, and I’ll see that chaos is caused.’ Angus banged his fist on the table, and nodded his head.
Tony was thinking; he wasn’t sure what to do yet, but he wanted everyone to be ready to act when he did.
‘Firstly, Angus, I want you to get some of the laziest guys you have. Let’s not fire them, let’s use them. I presume Marlon’s men are still sniffing drugs and think they can get away with it, like they used to do with him; that’s why they’re still in bed at midday, they’re sleeping it off. Are there any of them you trust, have you made a friend?’
‘Aye, I have that, Mr Lambrianu. Big Jamaican lad named Neville, hard as nails, likes the money and the ladies. Always on time, he is.’
‘Good. When the time comes to put my plans into action, I want the old South London mob doing this dirty work, not any of our men that you brought with you. That would make it look too obvious that I’m involved. The east fighting the east? No, you and your friend Neville are to await my plans. Not a word now, I’ll let you know the details soon.’ Tony stood up to leave.
‘Mr Lambrianu, sir.’ Angus looked almost too embarrassed to ask. He flashed a fleeting glance at Jake, in the hope of some back up. ‘This trouble you want causing, it’s not going to end up with me back inside, is it?’ Angus wasn’t afraid of prison, but he had done more than his fair share of life behind bars. Now he was settling down and had a good life, he didn’t want to return to that, although he realised that he worked for Tony, and if he wanted to carry on doing so, he would have to carry out his orders.
‘Good God, no Angus. That is certainly not my plan. A few of your lazy troublemakers might get a hard time, but rest assured, definitely not you.’ With that Tony and Jake left.
***
Back at the club, Sharon had organized bacon sandwiches all around. It was much appreciated by the bouncers. They were treated like human beings, not just gorillas in suits.
‘I’ll have one of those,’ shouted Jake to the delivery driver, who had a cardboard box piled high with individually wrapped bacon sandwiches.
‘Sharon,’ said Tony, while drinking his coffee and eating his sandwich, ‘when is this male strip night Ashley has organized?’ He was intrigued; a plan had formed in his head. Now was the time to strike, while the iron was hot.
Sharon burst out laughing. ‘Why? Have you had enough of the girls, already? Are you thinking of going and seeing how the other half live?’
‘I am, actually, and so is Jake.’
Jake nearly choked on his sandwich and spilt his coffee in the process.
‘You’re not bloody serious, Tony, I don’t want to go and see a bunch of male strippers with their dicks hanging out.’ Jake was still trying to control his cough, after nearly choking on his sandwich. He couldn’t believe his ears; Tony had some crazy plans at times, but this was the worst. ‘Don’t you think it might ruin your reputation as a ladies’ man? Ha, ha, got you there, haven’t I?’
‘Why would it? Who knows about it, but the members? And, from what you tell me, they don’t exactly shout about their inner fantasies. No, we have to go to put our stamp of approval on it, and to let them know they haven’t pulled the wool over our eyes. Our approval of them is their mild acceptance of us. They may not like us, but they’re not going to cross us.’ He looked at Sharon and grinned. ‘Besides, we’ll get to see the amazing Ashley in action. Your wife’s new bezzie mate.’
‘The pair of you may well laugh at my friendship with my new “bezzie mate” but, believe me, he is a mine of information. Also, he thinks I already know about some stuff, so he talks freely about it.’
Jake frowned and looked across at her. ‘What can he possibly think you already know? What information can he share?’
Tony and Jake sat waiting for Sharon’s next instalment. She obviously had something to tell them, but she was going to tease them a little first.
‘Mmmm, let me see. Such as, Mathers used to be Don Carlos’s trusted wingman and butler. Oh, yes, Mr Butter-Wouldn’t-Melt-In-My-Mouth knows everything.’ Sharon smiled at them both. She could see this intriguing piece of information had captured their interest. They both looked shocked.
‘And Ashley was footman and then under-butler. He, too, knows how the world works. So, don’t judge a book by the cover, boys, eh? Mathers was put in charge of that club to be the eyes and ears, watching over those aging politicians with their secrets. Blackmail, Tony, just like you prepare for with the cameras in the VIP booths, here at the club. How else does Ralph Gold, otherwise known as “the untouchable”, have all those politicians and judges licking his arse? Borrowing money off him to fight their campaigns? They owe him everything. He is one clever bastard, I’ll grant you that, and he doesn’t get his hands dirty.’
Sharon had definitely given them something to think about. ‘So, Mathers is a gangster? Well, he scares the shit out of me.’ Jake laughed.
‘They’re watching us and schooling us, Jake, and sometimes they’re even helping us. Maybe, just maybe, we might get a foot in the door with Ralph Gold and the big boys after all,’ Tony said, nodding his head.
‘Can’t wait for that,’ said Jake.
‘Why do you think Mathers is grooming you?’ said Sharon.
‘By the way,’ said Tony, his mind returning to the plan he had in mind, ‘on the subject of cameras, I want a small camera installing above the bed in each of those rooms, upstairs at the club.’ Tony looked at Sharon and wagged his finger. ‘And even your precious Ashley is not to know about that, do you hear me?’ Tony was serious; what he had in mind was only for the people that needed
to know.
‘Oh, God, Tony.’ Sharon looked horrified. ‘What have you got in mind, now?’ She looked at Jake; he, too, was open-mouthed. ‘Don’t you get enough material from the VIP booths, here at the club?’
Tony had an evil smug expression on his face. He crossed his legs, put his hands behind his head, and sat back in his chair. ‘If we should ever need important help, those recordings would give us something to barter with. Why waste a good opportunity?’
Sharon opened her mouth to protest, but he continued.
‘They might talk in front of Mathers, but they wouldn’t say anything in front of us, and Mathers won’t share what he learns with us. If everything went wrong tomorrow, those posh members would pretend they didn’t even know us. They would wash their hands of us, even though we know their little secrets. This way, they can’t forget us. Should we ever need the kind of intervention they could offer, well, all’s fair in love and war, eh?’
‘That’s proper blackmail. You could go to prison for that,’ said Sharon.
‘True, but do you think those guys, with their skeletons in the cupboard, are really going to report us to the police? I don’t think so.’ Tony gave a smug grin.
‘How are you going to get them installed without anyone knowing?’ said Jake. ‘That Mathers guy knows everything. God, he probably knows the last time I farted!’ Jake was both shocked and surprised at Tony’s suggestion, although he knew Tony hadn’t liked being snubbed, and now he had an angle on their weaknesses, he was going to use it to show them who was boss.
‘Electricians, sorting out the wiring. No big deal, workmen have already been there, and you, Sharon, the good and trusted friend of both of them, are going to be on hand.’
‘You’ve got it all worked out haven’t you.’ Sharon didn’t sound at all pleased. ‘You’re an evil bastard, at times, Tony, you really are. So, I’m to keep them both busy, while you’re installing your porn cameras, am I?’
‘Tell her, Jake.’ Tony looked at Jake for approval. ‘I don’t care who you’re friends with, Sharon, it’s always been us three.’
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